"You sure this is safe?"
Hailey Nelson's voice cut through the mountain air as she stepped out of the dusty production van.
The driver, a middle-aged man with weathered skin, just shrugged.
"Safe as it gets up here," the driver said, not very reassuringly. "Watch your step. It's slippery."
Her breath created little clouds in the crisp morning air.
Before her lay the Cascade Range, its rugged peaks reaching up to a sky that seemed torn between a steely gray and a soft blue.
Pine trees clung to steep slopes like dark green guardians, their branches weighed down by frost, sparkling in the early light.
She wrapped her leather jacket tightly around her shoulders as the mountain chill nipped at her skin relentlessly.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" a voice said beside her.
Hailey turned to see a production assistant shivering in a thin hoodie.
"Freezing, more like," she muttered, rubbing her arms.
"You get used to it," the assistant replied, though Hailey wasn't sure he believed that himself.
The film set bustled with organized chaos around them. Crew members hauled equipment up the winding mountain road, their voices echoing off the rugged cliffs.
Camera operators tested angles against the stunning backdrop.
This was her last chance.
After everything with Eric.
This foreign production was the only door still open.
"Hailey! You must be our stunt rider!"
A man with a charming accent approached, his enthusiasm infectious.
Hailey recognized him from the production photos as Scott Reed, the second unit director.
Trailing behind him was a woman with sharp, calculating eyes — Ivy Graham, the stunt coordinator.
"That's me," Hailey replied, extending her hand with a professional smile. "Thank you for bringing me on board."
"Oh, we're lucky to have you," Scott said, shaking her hand vigorously. "Your reputation precedes you."
"What's left of it," Hailey muttered under her breath.
"What was that?" Scott asked.
"Nothing," Hailey said quickly. "Just glad to be here."
Scott's grin widened as he gestured toward the mountain landscape.
"You know, it's interesting," Scott said. "Our director is Thai, but he insisted we shoot here in America."
"Really?" Hailey asked, genuinely curious.
"Most of our crew are Americans too," Scott continued. "He wanted that authentic Western mountain feel."
He swept his arm toward the cliff edge where cameras were being positioned.
"Take a look at this view," Scott said proudly. "Isn't it pretty?"
Hailey followed his gaze across the breathtaking expanse of peaks and valleys.
Despite everything weighing on her mind, she couldn't help but be moved.
"It is," she said softly. "It really is beautiful."
"Worth the early morning drive?" Scott asked with a wink.
"Ask me after the stunt," Hailey replied, managing a small smile.
Scott laughed, pulling out his phone to check the weather.
"The weather service is calling for possible snow flurries this afternoon," Scott said, squinting at his screen.
"Flurries?" Hailey repeated. "How possible?"
"Like sixty percent," Scott said casually. "But we should be done long before that."
"Should be?" Hailey asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Will be," Scott corrected with confidence. "Definitely will be."
Hailey looked around at the sprawling setup spread across the mountain terrain.
Equipment was scattered across what seemed like acres of wilderness.
"It's really a big location," Hailey remarked. "Don't you need a permit to shoot here?"
Scott's laugh had an edge to it that made something twist in her stomach.
"A team of our reputation doesn't need that," he said with casual confidence.
"You don't?" Hailey asked, concern creeping into her voice.
"If we want to shoot somewhere," Scott continued, "we can just do it."
The words sent a chill through her that had nothing to do with the mountain air.
"Really?" Hailey asked, trying to keep her voice light. "Won't that be a problem?"
"Don't worry," Scott assured her, his tone becoming more serious. "My team has good backup."
Before Hailey could ask what he meant, raised voices erupted nearby.
A short, intense-looking man was gesticulating wildly at Scott. He spoke rapid Thai in increasingly agitated tones.
Even without understanding the language, Hailey could tell he was complaining.
"Uh-oh," Ivy muttered beside her. "Director's not happy."
"About what?" Hailey asked.
"About everything, probably," Ivy said with a sigh. "He's very... particular."
Scott's easy manner changed as he listened, his jaw tightening with each word the director spoke.
The Thai director's voice grew louder, more accusatory.
"What's he saying?" Hailey whispered to Ivy.
"Nothing good," Ivy replied quietly. "He's questioning the quality of the crew."
"Before we even start?" Hailey asked, incredulous.
"Welcome to international productions," Ivy said dryly.
Hailey knew this was her opportunity to escape.
"Excuse me," she said quietly. "I'm going to check my equipment."
Neither Scott nor Ivy noticed her slip away. They were too busy trying to calm the frustrated director.
Hailey moved toward a quiet spot behind some equipment cases. She pulled out her phone with shaking hands.
Her fingers moved across the screen as she typed a message to Walter, someone who was like a father figure to her.
"I'm about to shoot a movie at a cliff out of town. Don't worry. Sorry about everything."
She stared at the text for a long moment before hitting send, knowing it might be the last communication Walter ever received from her in a long time.
Her thumb scrolled down to her boyfriend, Eric's contact information. She hovered over his name, conflicted.
Part of her wanted to delete it entirely, to cut that final thread connecting her to the pain.
But she couldn't bring herself to do it.
The phone suddenly buzzed to life in her hand. Eric's name flashed across the screen.
Hailey stared at the incoming call, her heart racing. She let it ring once, twice, three times.
Finally, she pressed accept.
"Hello," Hailey said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Hailey." Eric's voice came through, raw with emotion. "Where are you?"
The question hung between them like an accusation.
Hailey looked out at the cliff edge, at the cameras being positioned.
A strange sense of calm settled over her.
"Eric," Hailey said instead of answering. "Eric, let me go, please."
"No!" The word exploded from the phone. "I want to be with you, Hailey."
She could hear the desperation in his voice.
"Eric," Hailey said again, his name like a prayer.
"Let us start over, Hailey," Eric pleaded, his words tumbling out. "If you need anything, I can give you everything."
"Telling me this now is too late," Hailey said, her voice growing stronger.
"It's not too late," Eric insisted. "It can't be too late."
"But it is," Hailey said softly.
"No matter how long it takes," Eric continued, his voice breaking, "I'll be waiting for you."
"Eric—" Hailey tried to interrupt.
"I'll be waiting there at our home," Eric continued. "I'll cook good food and wait for you to come eat with me."
The image he painted was painfully domestic. So different from the chaos that had defined the final moments of their relationship.
"If you come back to me," Eric said, his voice dropping to an intimate whisper, "I promise I won't let you be anybody else's stand-in anymore."
Hailey's breath caught at his words.
"Because I—" Eric started.
The signal cut out.